


Starland ☆

by snugglyrabbits



Category: Luigi's Mansion (Video Games), Super Mario & Related Fandoms
Genre: Amusement Parks, Gen, Necromancy, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Possession, Suspense
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-07
Updated: 2020-06-06
Packaged: 2021-03-03 20:22:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,121
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24581512
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snugglyrabbits/pseuds/snugglyrabbits
Summary: Mario, Luigi, and several of their close friends have been invited to the grand opening of a mysterious new theme park.
Comments: 7
Kudos: 18





	1. Prologue

“Slow down!”

Two small figures burst through the woods in fast spurts, calling back and forth loudly to one another as they went. They narrowly avoided tripping and stumbling over obstacles on the thin paths, trying to keep a steady grip on their flashlights. The light in the sky was rapidly disappearing past the line of the horizon, leaving the two young Toad explorers to traverse throughout growing darkness.

“Keep up!” The one in front, a purple-capped Toad with dark eyeliner and a black vest on, called. They held onto a map and led the way, confidently trailblazing up ahead. “Don’t tell me you’re scared already, Bolbi! The night’s just begun!”

“I’m not!” Bolbi, the one lagging behind, snarled. The thoroughly anxious Toad had a yellow spotted cap, spectacles clinging to his pale face over his dark eyes. “You’re just going too fast! I can only get so far with these short legs, Amanita!”

“Sounds like something a big scaredy cat would say!”

“S-Stop it! I’m not scared!” He pouted upon realizing his voice was quivering. “I-I just think it’s not the best idea to go messing around with obviously haunted stuff in the dead of night!”

Amanita laughed. They were smiling, giddy with excitement as they ran through the deep woods, which were only getting more treacherous and dark as they moved onward. And that was just the way they liked it.

“I’m not slowing down, and I certainly can’t stop! We have to move forward, in the name of discovery!”

“That’s a load of hogwash.” Bolbi replied, huffing. “You had better wait for me, or I’m going home.”

“Noo!” Amanita finally stopped, turning to their companion. “Don’t you want to stick around, at least until we get there? My spirit board requires at least two participants.”

“You're lucky we’re best friends.” Bolbi finally caught up, punching Amanita in the shoulder gently. “Cause you’re super weird.”

“What’s that? I can’t hear you over the sound of me being super cool and about to discover a paranormal phenomenon in person!”

Bolbi scoffed, rummaging through his bag for a snack. “Well, if we’re going to do this, we had better get there soon. Mom still expects me back by morning. Not to mention, she thinks we’re currently sleeping over at your house right now and NOT running off into the deep woods to find a haunted anomaly in an abandoned and probably dangerous area.”

“Right... I know.”

The two young Toads trekked onward, breathing hard as they made their way to a clearing in the distance. The moon illuminated the little spots past the canopy of trees above, the two realizing the paths branched out several ways.

Amanita studied their map, looking around. “Let’s stop here for a second. I want to make sure we’re going the right way.”

Bolbi scrunched his face up, looking vaguely disbelieving. “Sooo, how exactly do we know when we’re there?”

“Well, legends say that-“

“How about something more tangible?”

“You’re no fun.” The purple-capped Toad grumbled and stuck out their tongue, looking through their notes. “But, there’ll be a big broken-down Ferris wheel… And three yoshi figures from the broken carousel lining the grounds, pink, black, and green in color... And supposedly, there’s gonna be a shed still standing. That’s where most of the recent ghostly activity is.”

“Spooky. And why exactly is this fairground in particular haunted?”

Amanita cleared their throat, putting their flashlight below their face for an added spooky effect, lowering their squeaky voice as best they could to sound even more dramatic.

“It all started a long time ago, when someone apparently died by falling off the top of the Ferris wheel. And although the body was soon removed, the soul remained… A vengeful spirit haunted the park for the rest of its operation, seeking out anyone who wasn’t following the rules to scare them into leaving… or worse!”

Amanita then rolled their eyes, grumbling as they dropped their scary storytelling voice. “Buuut, then that just turned out to have just been a scary story told by some older Toads to scare kids into not causing trouble. The only reason the fairground even shut down was because of maintenance and budget issues…”

“Cool story.” Bolbi fixed his glasses, leaning against a tree as he realized what his friend was saying. He was now even more annoyed. “So why are we even out here?!”

“Well, if you would wait, I was gonna explain that.” Amanita scowled before continuing to explain. “Freakily enough, the ghost activity only began really recently. See, the more time it was abandoned, the more people came to tear the fairground apart. But a brave few not scared by the legends also came to explore…”

“This group of kids who I’m friends with, they came by after hearing some weird experiments were supposedly going on in the woods. Apparently this old guy, a traveling researcher, was doing some crazy spooky stuff in the shed I told you about earlier… And soon after he left, the hauntings started. Shrill moaning, lights flickering, stuff on the fairground moving around without any public interference… You know, all your classic haunting tropes.”

“It’s just gonna turn out to be some troublemaking, mischievous Boos again.” Bolbi muttered, smirking. “And you are gonna be soooo disappointed.”

“Well, that’s one pessimistic point of view...” Amanita stopped, their eyes widening as they looked around once more, fixing the knapsack on their shoulders and pointing eagerly. “Look! Look, look, look!”

“What?”

“Light! See that little glow in the distance?” Amanita rushed forward, scrambling to get a hold of their ghost detection equipment as they ran. “That could be the shed! There could be a haunting happening right now! I am not gonna miss this!”

Bolbi groaned, following. “You know, Amanita, I will consider this trip a win if neither of us die.”

Using only the light in the distance to guide them, the two made their way toward what they thought to be the fairground.

Bolbi was deliberately slow when following Amanita, looking for any signs that they could be ambushed by some older punk teens or Boos looking to pull a prank. He'd already been thoroughly pranked for one month of adventuring... He shivered, recalling when a Boo had nearly scared him right out of his skin. Amanita’s high pitched laughter was still fresh in his mind.

But Amanita, on the other hand, was practically gleaming with excitement. Loud shrill squeals and squeaks escaped their lips as they descended upon the lit shed, not bothering to contain their eagerness. They carefully raised their rickety ghost hunting device, the little needle indicating paranormal activity dangerously close to pushing past the red region on the meter. Like a moth drawn to a flame, they jumped out of the woods’ undergrowth to the open lawn revealed under the flickering light of a weary wooden building.

Bolbi followed hastily, nearly tripping and hitting the ground as they popped out of the bushes.

There was a huge amount of land sprawled out before them, parts of machinery and broken down wooden signs lining the grounds. And just as they were told, there was a pink, black, and green yoshi figure outside the space, each rusted over with age. The wind whistled as it blew past the metalworks of the fairgrounds, making the two little Toads shiver.

They could almost imagine this place in its full glory, with families running around and having fun, cheery carnival music filling the ears of everyone who came.

“This place was way before our time… Can you imagine how much undocumented history it probably has?” Amanita wandered about, still giddy.

“I think it would’ve been cool to go at some point.” Bolbi gently kicked a fallen wooden case as he examined the area, glass crunching under his shoes. He bent down and hit some of the buttons on the machine, looking at the coin slot. “Think any of this stuff works still? Maybe there’s still some coins we can get inside this thing…”

No one answered him. He fixed his glasses, looking up.

“Amanita?”

His breath caught in his throat as he looked up. The light in the shed had gone out, and his friend was nowhere to be seen.

“Uhh… Amanita?” He shakily called, raising his flashlight. He shined it toward the old shed, hoping for a response. “Amanita!” Bolbi gulped as the old shed just creaked.

Surely if his friend was inside, they’d answer him…?

“Don’t panic, don’t panic, don’t panic…” He trembled as he approached the building, reaching for the door, which was already slightly ajar.

He pushed it open, revealing a very boring looking shack on the interior. It was dusty and only had a single workbench within, covered in weird old trinkets and framed items.

He looked over the items, dust collecting on his hands.

_“BOO!”_

Bolbi’s immediate reaction was to scream, the sound nearly loud enough to shatter glass. Amanita was behind him, bursting into laughter as their friend slowly started to breathe normally again, recovering from having been scared so suddenly.

“What is wrong with you, Amanita?!” Bolbi cried, huffing. “I thought something happened, with the light going out and all-”

“I did too! That’s why I came in here. Pff, I was hiding behind the door, scaredy cat. Oh, but...” Amanita showed off their ghost detecting device, the needle having unceremoniously returned back to the green side. “See, look. It’s not picking anything else up. Wanna try the spirit board now?”

“Can we just go back home…?”

“Don’t tell me I scared you that bad!” Amanita now looked genuinely remorseful. “I’m sorry, I just thought it would be funny…”

“A-Amanita…”

“Seriously, I’m sorry-”

“A-Amanita…! The door!”

Amanita turned on their heel, watching with wide eyes as the door started to move on it’s own. Not as though it was swaying in the wind, but rather, moving wildly on it’s hinges, as though someone unseen was moving it.

The door flung open, hitting the inside of the shed with a sound THWACK, before slamming shut. Bolbi quickly reacted, rushing to the door and trying to push it open. It was though a lock had been clicked. The door was stuck.

“Don’t panic, don’t panic, don’t panic…” He muttered, looking to Amanita for help, who clearly got the idea.

“Hey!” They called, pounding their fist against the door. “If someone’s trying to prank us, you’re very funny, but we’re here on important ghost hunting business, so let us out!”

The two waited, but nothing came of their cries for help or release.

Amanita sighed, slipping the knapsack on their back off and digging through it. “There has to be something in here to help us… And just saying, the spirit board idea is still on the table for us while we wait. This is a pretty cool haunting opportunity.”

Bolbi was obviously panicking, not helped by Amanita’s quips.

“Right… Well, hang on, I’m sure I have some sort of tool that can get us out… without damaging up this place too much. It’s still a cool haunted place and all…”

All at once and without warning, the light in the shed returned. The two looked up at the flickering bright bulb, frozen in place, until they heard a faint laughter.

Turning with terrified slowness, the pair found that the pile of junk on the workbench was lightly glowing. Subtle hues of purple and blue cascaded the walls and ground around them, a chill wind making them shiver.

Amanita’s eyes were drawn to their flickering detection device now on the ground, the little machine whirring and fizzling, needle wildly flailing over the dark red region, before promptly exploding into pieces. Little nuts and bolts went flying, the two moving to protect themselves.

“What’s going on?!” Bolbi wailed, bursting into tears. Amanita looked for any explanation, both scared and intrigued as the glow upon the workbench grew brighter.

The laughter returned, louder. It was shrill and oddly placed in pitch, echoing in their ears. Amanita stepped forward, outstretching a hand to the pile of frames and scrap metal on the table, so oddly fascinated, fixated by the mysterious enigma before them.

“Amanita!”

They moved things on the table aside, until they realized where the glow was coming from.

A painting.

And with one single touch, Amanita simply brushing their hand over the intricately painted hues of the canvas, everything stopped. The lightbulb above burst, plunging Bolbi into darkness. There was a faint thud afterward, Bolbi standing up and approaching the general area Amanita had gone to.

“A-Amanita?”

There was a silence.

“Is this another j-joke? V-Very funny… You got me, haha…” Bolbi’s voice got quieter. “Amanita…?”

“Ahhahheehhee…”

“What…?”

Stumbling to their feet, a new light was evidently behind Amanita’s eyes. And it was not anything like their own.

Bolbi staggered back. A new presence had made its way into his friend.

“Ahh, it’s been so long since I’ve had a mortal host!” The new voice was even higher in pitch, horribly malicious in tone. They stretched, cackling. “It is a rather good thing you two visited… I was getting rather restless.”

Bolbi quaked in his shoes, fighting back the tears in his eyes. He fought to run away, but couldn’t find the ability to.

“Now, you’ll be going nowhere, of course, my little yellow friend. Why, I’ve been dormant for so long...” The pale faced Toad, eyes lit, smiled malevolently. “I’ll need someone to fill me in before I return to plotting a new world conquest…”

“W-Whatever you have planned, the Mario brothers will s-stop you!” Bolbi yelled defiantly. “They’re the best heroes in the Mushroom Kingdom…!”

“It’s a rather funny thing you mention them…” Another laugh slipped out of the Toad. “I’d like to know every little thing about what they’ve been up to lately. Every place they’ve been… and every villain they’ve faced as of late.”

“N-No!”

“It would be wise to do as I say, if you don’t want to end up as a corpse…” A chilling smile crawled across the Toad’s face. “You’ll find it’ll be much easier for you if you simply follow orders…”

“I...”

“Start talking.”

Finding no other options in sight, Bolbi began to tell the ghostly figure inhabiting his friend everything he knew. He went on about everything he’d seen in the Mushroom Kingdom news, everything he’d heard from rumors and friends, everything.

And eventually, that ghastly hollow smile on his friend’s face widened, a wicked plan stirring in the consciousness of whoever the horrible entity within was. With a wave of the strange ghostly Toad’s hand, and a single scream just barely ringing out, Bolbi completely disappeared from the shed, out of sight.

The door of the shed swung back open with a click, the cold wind from outside enveloping the only figure left within.

The disheveled Toad reached down upon moving forward, picking up the fallen knapsack once belonging to their host, searching through it while moving to walk back outside. Books and papers fell to the ground, including several other devices and trinkets. A rather thick book hit the ground with a loud thud, the metallic cover shining even in the darkness. The moonlight reflected the purple and raven color, showing off the gleaming title.

“...Necromancy, hm?” A dark and sunken smile stretched across the little Toad’s face. “Not a bad idea at all, child... Not a bad idea, indeed...”


	2. Chapter 2

“This is suspicious."

“What is?” Mario glanced up from his position at the stove, his grip on the frying pan’s handle loosening. His shirt sleeves were rolled up, a white apron tied tightly around his stout body. He turned around to look at his brother, wiping his hands and setting his spatula aside. “What's suspicious?"

"That."

Luigi pointed and reached forward, flipping over the golden letter lying on the table. He cringed, the faux glitter scratching off the cardstock and onto him. Grimacing, he quickly shook it off.

"I've dealt with my fair share of letters leading to traps before, and this sure feels like one." He shoved the paper aside, crossing his arms.

Mario shrugged, effortlessly flipping a golden-brown pancake onto a plate meant for his waiting brother.

“I think it sounds fun."

After pouring more batter into the pan and returning it to the stove, Mario approached the table and reached for the letter, looking it over again. He'd only briefly skimmed it before.

‘☆ You're invited! The Starland Theme Park is now open! And YOU are invited to its grand opening, tomorrow morning! ☆

☆ Join us for an all expenses paid 3-day trip, including your park admission and hotel reservations, on us! Be sure to come prepared for fun, and be ready to make fantastical memories that will last a lifetime! ☆

☆ (Use this letter as your ticket upon entry.) ☆’

That was all that was printed on the card, written in black bolded letters upon a golden glittering background. The envelope it came in, which was now laying discarded on the ground, was white, with a dark crimson seal having kept it shut.

"Yeah." Mario glanced the invitation over in a few quick seconds, setting it back down. He returned to the stove, preparing another plate for himself. "Sounds like a good time."

Luigi didn’t respond, pushing the letter away. Mario had set it down a bit too close to him for his comfort level.

Mario strode over to the table after a long stretch of silence, carrying two plates.

“Hope you’re hungry, bro.” He set down one of the plates of pancakes in front of his waiting brother, alongside a bottle of maple syrup. “Want any powdered sugar?”

Luigi persisted, refusing to change the subject.

"-You think pretty much anything sounds like a good time. Like go-karting with your arch nemesis, or, or- running off with a bunch of weird rabbit creatures dressed up in costumes mimicking us, or going to those tournaments where we fight to the literal death like, every day. I can only have my nose broken and my soul ripped out so many times, bro." Luigi grimaced, burying his face in his hands.

"Oh, come on. You've dealt with way worse, Weegie." Mario pat Luigi's back before walking to turn the stove off. "I mean, a theme park? I think you can handle it. You’ve handled haunted mansions, haunted castles, haunted hotels, haunted houses… a lotta haunted stuff, really... all on your own!”

“That doesn’t mean it was easy! It was terrifying, Mario…”

“But, you did it! And you’ll have me around this time. No need to worry, right?”

"I'm not even a fan of rollercoasters or anything...” Luigi’s voice got quieter. “And I’m definitely not a fan of crowds. What's the point?"

“The point is having some fun for once, lil bro.” Mario explained, playfully ruffling Luigi’s hair. He sat down across from him, a teasing smirk on his face. “And besides, there'll probably be plenty of kiddie rides for you to go on.”

Luigi frowned.

“B-But, bro, you have to understand where I’m coming from.” He grimaced, trying to hide his embarrassed blush from the comment. “I mean, for you, doesn’t this all sound a bit too good to be true? A free trip?”

“Well, we ARE kinda heroes, Weeg." Mario pointed with his fork in the air. "It’s nice to get rewarded and recognized for your hard work sometimes.”

“The letter didn’t even mention that though...” Luigi was a lot more annoyed than anxious at this point. He huffed. “You’re just very prone to jumping right into things before thinking it through, Mario. And I really don’t want us to get caught up in something we can’t get out of.”

“For Grambi’s sake, Luigi, it’s just an invitation to a theme park.” Mario sighed. “It’s not that deep.”

Luigi scowled down at his plate, picking at his food. He didn’t feel much like eating, nausea setting in.

He really didn’t like arguing with his brother, but he also REALLY didn’t like the thought of being dragged along without any choice to some shady place. He’d been working on standing up to people like that... even to his brother. Sure, there was a chance he was overthinking it. It could actually be really fun, and a great way to step out of his comfort zone. Maybe he'd have a great time. Maybe he was just deterred by the idea of going in the first place. The idea of waiting in long lines surrounded by hundreds of loud people was less-than-charming to him.

But, still...

Luigi glanced up from his food, watching as Mario ate so casually across from him. His brother was humming a little ditty to himself as he read the tabloids delivered earlier that morning by Parakarry.

Luigi just didn't appreciate how calm he could be about this. He just wished Mario understood his worry and realized how strange this whole thing was. He wished he would take it seriously.

It wasn't long before he felt his eyes wandering away from Mario, falling upon the letter again, just the sight making his stomach twist. He bit his lip, his tired eyes making it hard to focus.

“But, Mario,” Luigi hesitantly began. He fiddled with his fingers. “W-What if-?”

“Luigi.” Mario responded fast, as though he'd been mentally preparing himself to answer. “How about we go consult the Princess about it? She’s a lot smarter than I am, you know that."

"The Princess? But..."

"She’ll probably know just what to do, and getting her opinion might calm you down. We can tell her everything. Does that sound okay?”

Luigi thought for a moment, then nodded, pushing his chair out from the table and moving to stand. Before he could get far, Mario spoke up.

“We aren’t leaving this table until you eat something, though.” Mario chided, lifting his fork and pointing to Luigi's practically untouched plate. “I worked hard on those hotcakes.”

Luigi smiled upon hearing Mario’s stern tone turn chipper again, sitting back down. He ate, trying not to let his mind go over the worst scenarios. Any visit to the Princess usually went pretty well, granted there were no attempted kidnappings or attacks on her castle...

Luigi sighed.

He paused and looked up, pushing some lingering magazines over, covering the golden invitation up so that it was out of sight.

He had no reason to worry, he assured himself. He’d be okay.

\- - - - - - - - - -

The two brothers were granted access to the Mushroom Kingdom castle with little to no fussing from the royal guard. They entered slowly, fixing their hats and shining the buttons on their overalls in order to appear their best before their Princess.

What they hadn't expected was to run right into the blonde monarch herself, headed straight for the doors they'd just entered from. After a near collision, the two parties simply stood and stared at one another, shocked. It took them a moment to comprehend the situation.

"Princess-?"

"Mario? Luigi?” Peach glanced between them. “What are you two doing here?"

"W-We're sorry for coming uninvited...!" Luigi quickly apologized, bowing his head. "We just-a wanted to ask you a few things about w-what you think this letter we got means, and what your opinion is on-“

“Letter?”

Luigi nodded.

“May I see it, please?” Peach requested, holding out one hand. Both of the brothers caught the curiously cautious glint in her eye.

“O-Of course…”

Luigi revealed the note, messily stuffed back into the envelope it'd been delivered in. He handed it over to Peach, the golden card reflecting in her wide eyes as she took it in her hands. She brushed her gloved fingers over it, reading each line over, tracing some of the pen strokes.

She frowned, handing the invite back.

“What is it?”

Peach didn’t respond, instead reaching behind her, only to reveal a letter exactly matching theirs.

"I was going to come and ask you about the same thing."

\- - - - - - - - - -

The questions came in multitudes and the answers returned were sparse. The three walked and talked as they made their way through the castle halls.

Peach explained she'd received the letter that morning. She hadn't thought much of it at first, thinking it was from a friend. At least, until several of her _other_ friends started reaching out to ask her if she had also received a strange invitation.

"Daisy was one of the first to ask me. I thought this had her name written all over it, the whole mysterious invite thing, but she had no idea what it was talking about. She was excited though. She heard Rosalina got one too, so I requested their presence here." Peach sighed. “Turns out word spread fast. I essentially am now housing several of my friends and allies at the moment while we try and figure this out."

The brothers didn't know exactly what she meant by that until they made their way to the conference hall.

Daisy and Rosalina were standing by one of the large windows, the early afternoon sun reflecting off the two of their shining faces. They were engrossed in a personal conversation, not noticing the brothers and their entrance. At a small table toward the back of the room were Prince Haru, Prince Pine, and Prince Dreambert, all talking over tea. Spread out on the table cloth in front of them were three individual invitations. They didn’t seem to be discussing the matter at hand though, Pine telling the other two princes a story, as the brothers assumed.

“Princess!”

A high-pitched voice caught their attention.

“You got them?”

“Yes, Starlow.” Peach gestured to the brothers. “But actually, they came to me first. They’ve also received a letter.”

The spherical Star Sprite pursed her lips as she floated into sight, hovering at Peach’s side. She was holding her letter in her mouth, her initial words having been a bit of a challenge to understand. But her squeaky tone was always hard to miss.

"Starlow was one of the first to get here." Peach motioned to her friend, the tiny Star Sprite leaning in close to the rest of the group. "She was especially curious."

Starlow spit the letter out of her mouth, showing it off to the brothers. It was the same as theirs, with the same bold black ink, and the same golden background.

“And that brings me to my question.” Peach continued, turning to face Mario and Luigi. “What do you boys think of this? Do you think it’s a trap?”

“I do-” Luigi started, only for Mario to speak.

“Luigi’s a bit skeptical, but I think it sounds fun.” Mario smiled. “And frankly, too good of an opportunity to pass up. I’ve been needing a vacation.”

Luigi frowned. "I just think it's really strange. Where did this all even come from?”

"Well, I had some Toads look into it, and it appears as though the park had been abandoned for some time. A mysterious entrepreneur revitalized it, and they've been sprucing it up ever since. It was built off the edge of the woods. No one usually goes out there, so the details we have are minimal, but we have a pretty good idea of what to expect.”

"And what do you think is the reason this person is inviting us, of all people?"

"I assume they want some big names backing the project up. Should the royal figures of various Kingdoms arrive, crowds would flock to it. It's a rather good show of publicity."

"Smart business plan." Mario crooned. "I don't know who would be able to resist following your lead, my Princess."

Peach smiled, blushing.

Luigi returned to the subject at hand. "But, that still begs the question, is it safe? Should we go?"

"Well, I've never been one to turn down an invitation of any type. And since there was no sender, I can't simply give them a message explaining my absence. It's impolite." Peach explained with a sigh. “Toadsworth insists I remember my manners.”

"So, we're going?"

"But, what if it's a trap? For all we know, this is Bowser's doing! Seems like something he would do. Lull us into a false sense of security, and then strike!"

"Bowser? Funny you say that.” Peach mused. “I haven't seen him in awhile."

"A-ha! He's probably setting up some death trap for us right now!" Luigi exclaimed. "So, please, can we just think rationally and go over our options? I don't think I'd be a good idea to just waltz into one of Bowser's traps unprepa-“

The conversation was brought to a screeching halt as a loud roar of an engine sounded outside.

A shadow cascaded over one of the grand stained glass windows, and with a loud SMASH, a blur of green, yellow, and red crashed into the castle. Pieces of expensive glass went everywhere, the royals in the hall each exclaiming in alarm and trying to avoid getting sliced up by the falling shards.

Peach scowled.

“Bowser.”

She sounded more irritated than frightened, pressing a hand to her temples.

“I hope you understand at this point, that there is a perfectly good door you can use and not break my stained glass windows in the process.”

“It’s not my fault this time, alright-?!” Bowser struggled landing the Koopa Car, fiddling with the controls as he hit the palace ground, very ungracefully. He grunted, lifting his head. “It is not EASY trying to pilot this thing with all eight of the kids in here.”

“What…?”

Without warning, a swarm of giggling reptilian children burst from the car, the Koopalings all hollering as they tumbled out over the castle grounds and walls.

Junior rolled out last, popping up in front of Peach.

“Hi-ya, Mama!”

“Bowser... Do you mind explaining what’s going on?” Peach questioned, still annoyed. “I have guests right now.”

“I need your advice.” Bowser lowered his voice. “How do you tell your kids ‘no’?”

“I don’t have children, so I wouldn’t know.”

“How about just saying it?” Mario added with a deadpan expression, appearing at Peach’s side.

“I can’t-! They found the invitation first, and now they can’t stop talking about how excited they are to go to ‘starry theme park’ or whatever.” Bowser groaned, letting out a long sigh. “So, I came over to have you let them down easy. You know, for me, so I don’t have to ruin my perfect relationship with my kiddos. It’s always easier for the mom to tell the kids the bad news.”

“Bowser, I swear to the Star Haven, I am not-...”

“Wait.” Luigi held up a hand. “Did you say theme park?”

"Uh, yeah. What about it, green stache?"

"We're... We’re actually trying to figure that out too, Bowser!”

“Yes. Before you so rudely interrupted." Peach complained aloud.

The rest of the guests gathered around, having recovered from Bowser’s crazy entrance. They curiously glanced between Peach, Bowser, and the others.

“Can’t believe whoever is behind this invited you too.” Mario smirked. “Seems a little risky.”

“I can!” Bowser huffed at his rival’s comment. “I mean, who could resist basking in my awesome glory in person?”

“Well, if Bowser was invited, isn’t that a good sign?” Pine suggested.

Haru stepped in. “Exactly. See, take no offense from this, dear King, but you don’t exactly have the best record when it comes to criminal actions. Whoever sent this invite, they must have a lot of faith in their park if they invited a well-known villain. Again, no offense.”

“None taken, cotton candy prince.”

"Wow, so it really turns out we're not the only VIPS around here then... Bummer." Starlow chirped, returning with a crumpet stuffed in her mouth from the princes' tea party.

"This theme park, it's just come out of nowhere." Peach repeated to Bowser. "And the fact that we've all been invited, including you now, apparently... Luigi and I both find it a bit suspicious."

"Well, I don't want to go, that's for sure. But the kids won't stop bothering me. It's not like we don't already have lots of cool stuff at home, but they're just never satisfied."

Bowser grunted, huffing as little puffs of smoke escaped his fuming nostrils.

"I could give them all Kingdoms of their own and they'd still be begging me for a vacation to some random place in the middle of the woods that has a rollercoaster or two. I can make rollercoasters too, kids!"

The Koopalings weren't listening.

“You know, sweetie?"

"Still no." Peach frowned. "No."

"Guys, we're getting off track." Starlow interjected. "We still need to figure out whether this is a safe excursion or not. If we’re going, I need time to gather my stuff! It’s an overnight trip, after all.”

"I suppose the only way to find out is to just go." Mario concluded, shrugging his shoulders.

"Really? Are you crazy?"

"Not at all. I'm just thinkin' based on our current information. If we think this is a trap, then we can come prepared for it. We're heroes after all. We've taken on witches, dragons, monsters, and Bowser every other Thursday!"

"Listen..."

"I really wanna go!" Daisy bounced up and down as she interjected on the conversation, gripping her own invitation tightly. "It sounds really cool! And I'm gonna take Weeg on all the coasters just to see his reaction!”

"T-That," Luigi blushed. "That sounds like a bad idea."

"I still don't wanna take the kids, though! Can you imagine how much work it's gonna be for one Koopa King to watch all eight of them?" Bowser roared. “I mean, I know I’m great and amazing, but even I can’t handle that!”

"Why don't you hire a sitter?"

"Ughh... Kamek is gonna hate me…”

"Sure you don't wanna help him out, Peachy?" Daisy giggled, squeezing Peach's cheek and nudging her arm.

"Daisy, I'm already giving into what you want to do. Don’t test me."

"It's going to be fun! I'm sure." Daisy reassured her friend.

Luigi wanted to say something, but he knew he was outnumbered. Everyone already seemed so excited, making plans, talking about what they would bring…

Despite everyone’s eagerness, Luigi didn’t feel better. In a way, he felt worse.

"Then, it's decided." Peach smiled.

Luigi spent the rest of the time at the castle in silence. His brother and Peach planned, the princesses and princes talked excitedly, and Bowser spent the time trying to wrangle his kids back together.

They researched the location, where to meet, and discussed what to bring. And as they returned home, they were eager to learn more about the mysterious theme park the next morning. It was well into the end of the day when the Princess dismissed them, the idea of Starland’s promise of fun and adventure fresh in their minds.

"I’ll see you all there tomorrow!” Peach’s sweet voice called into the emerging evening. “Be safe!”

\- - - - - - - - - -

Luigi threw an old suitcase out onto his bed, huffing as he threw a collection of shirts and pants into the bag.

“Still not feeling good?” Mario asked, quiet.

Luigi made an unsure sound.

“Maybe I should just stay home.” He lamented as he tossed a few clean shirts into his suitcase. “Watch the house and… water the plants, y’know.”

“You’re really still worrying about it?”

Luigi sighed, nodding. “A little.”

“Daisy said she’d be your personal bodyguard, bro. That means you really have nothing to worry about. Remember when she left hooked Bowser into oblivion? That girl can pack a punch.”

“I know, but...” Luigi sat down on his bed. “The whole thing, it just makes my stomach twist. I don’t know why. Maybe I just can’t handle the idea of going somewhere new. Everyone seems so excited, and I’m still…” He sighed. “Mario, is there something wrong with me? Why can’t I just be excited about this like everyone else?”

“Hey...” Mario sat down next to Luigi, hugging him close. “Nothing’s wrong with you, Weegie. And it’s going to be okay. I can promise you that.”

“Promise?”

“I’m your bro, Weeg. I’d never lie to you. We have each other, and nothing can bring us down when we’re a team.” Mario pat Luigi’s back. “Now, let’s get some sleep. We can finish packing up our stuff in the morning.”

Mario sat up, switching off the lights and settling into bed. He snored loudly almost immediately after laying down, exhausted from the day.

Luigi lied awake for awhile, drumming his fingers along his covers as he stared up at the ceiling.

“It’ll be okay.” He repeated to himself.

Luigi turned on his side, looking at his brother dozing off in the bed next to his. He smiled at the sight, yawning. He felt safe knowing Mario was with him.

He slept soundly, ready to take on tomorrow.

No matter what it may bring.


End file.
